DENVER - Last year, a second half collapse in a stunning road loss at Denver started a downward spiral for the IUPUI basketball team late in the season. This year, the Jaguars outscored Denver 52-37 in the second half to stun the Pioneers, 83-72 inside Magness Arena. The win assured the Jaguars a spot in the upcoming Summit League Tournament while dashing any hope Denver had of earning a share of the league's regular season title.  

Head Coach Jason Gardner and his staff is optimistic that this will spark a long postseason run for his squad. 

Senior Darell Combs led the charge with 18 points, six rebounds and three assists, but was largely unused down the stretch as his teammates punctuated the win. Seniors Kellon Thomas and Matt O'Leary tallied 12 apiece and junior Ron Patterson added 11. Sophomore T.J. Henderson finished with 10, including some timely scoring in the closing minutes. 

Daniel Amigo led Denver (16-11, 8-6 Summit) with 24 points and seven rebounds and Jake Pemberton contributed 16 points and five assists. 

"The guys really locked in in the second half," assistant coach Roy Hairston said. "We were able to put some stops together and I thought our bench did a really good job. 

"T.J. was great tonight and I thought Buss was great tonight. All in all, it was a total team victory. As the season goes on, you hope that growth starts. You adjust and get that composure and then you start to execute and lock in."

As has been the case all season, the Jaguars' success hinged on shooting. After shooting under 44 percent in the first half and allowing Denver to shoot 56 percent in the opening 20 minutes, the Jags trailing 35-31 at the break. 

However, a 13-3 run to start the second half, capped by dunks from O'Leary and Combs, saw IUPUI take the lead for good. 

"A big key for us was just getting momentum and seeking good, quality shots in the second half," Gardner said. "We came out with a lot of fight in the second half, especially at the defensive end. Then we did a good job of turning those (defensive) stops into points."

A 16-5 burst took a 46-42 lead and pushed it to 62-47 with 9:10 to play when Combs connected on a 16-foot jumper. Denver crept within eight, but Henderson and Patterson came through in the clutch to fend off any thoughts of a comeback. 

Patterson's trey with 5:19 to play gave the Jaguars a 12-point lead after Amigo had gotten the hosts within nine at the free throw line. Later, Henderson scored five points in two offensive trips, capped by a traditional three-point play with 2:23 remaining. 

IUPUI (12-16, 6-8 Summit) shot 57 percent from the floor in the second half and ended the game at 51 percent overall. Denver made just 11-of-26 (42.3 percent) second half attempts and finished at 49.1 percent. The Jags made 10-of-19 (52.6 percent) from three-point range and had 13 assists against just 10 miscues. Six different Jaguars made at least one three while Thomas was perfect on both of his attempts. The graduate transfer from Kent State also tallied his 1,000th collegiate point in the first half, having totaled more than 700 at Kent and nearly 300 at IUPUI. 

IUPUI outscored Denver 19-10 in points off turnovers and 29-14 in bench points to avenge an earlier loss to the Pioneers. 

Sophomore Evan Hall chipped in eight points off the bench and D.J. McCall finished with seven points, all from the foul line. 

With the win, IUPUI improved to 5-3 all-time against Denver. 

The Jaguars will return home for a two-game homestand, beginning with Thursday's game against Fort Wayne at 7:00 p.m. inside Indiana Farmers Coliseum, presented by Indiana Members Credit Union. IUPUI students will receive a FREE IUPUI Metros t-shirts, presented by the IUPUI Undergraduate Student Government (USG) and there will be an IUPUI ROTC commitment ceremony at halftime. The game will be seen on ESPN3 as Greg Rakestraw (pxp) and Hall of Famer Bob Lovell (analyst) are on the call. In addition, the game can be heard on 97.5 Fox Sports FM, 1260 WNDE and the iHeartRadio app as Morgan Adcock (pxp) describes the action. Tickets are available on TicketMaster or at the Coliseum box office.